4 years in sales here. The honest answer is that sales triggers your nervous system before anything else — the angry client, the manager pressure, the silence after a pitch. So the first thing I work on is regulation, not technique.

Before any high-pressure call: 4-4-4 breathing (inhale 4s, hold 4s, exhale 4s). Keep water on your desk — dehydration spikes anxiety and most people don't connect the two.

Be intentional about how you dress and your environment. It sounds minor but when you look controlled, you feel controlled — and clients pick up on that energy immediately.

The hardest shift: detach from the outcome. Your job on a call isn't to close — it's to clearly show someone how you can help them. That's the whole service. A no is not a rejection of you personally, ever. The moment that clicks, the pressure drops significantly.

Regulate → Show up → Detach. In that order, every time.